Man Accused of Graphic Threats to Six Justices

Panos Anastasiou, 76, made hundreds of threats to Supreme Court, say prosecutors
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 19, 2024 1:00 PM CDT
Alaskan Allegedly Threatened to Kill Supreme Court Justices
Bottom row, from left, Sonia Sotomayor, Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, Samuel Alito, and Elena Kagan. Top row, from left, Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Ketanji Brown Jackson.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

An Alaska man accused of sending threats to injure and kill six Supreme Court justices and some of their family members has been indicted on federal charges, per the AP.

  • Panos Anastasiou, 76, is accused of sending more than 465 messages through a public court website, including graphic threats of assassination and torture coupled with racist and homophobic rhetoric.
  • The indictment does not specify which justices Anastasiou targeted, but Attorney General Merrick Garland said he made the threats as retaliation for decisions he disagreed with. "Our democracy depends on the ability of public officials to do their jobs without fearing for their lives or the safety of their families," said Garland.

  • Prosecutors said in an indictment filed Wednesday that the messages were sent between March 2023 and mid-July 2024, and the Hill notes that many were delivered in the wake of a decision granting broad immunity to former President Trump.
  • Anastasiou has been charged with 22 counts, including nine counts of making threats against a federal judge and 13 counts of making threats in interstate commerce. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison for each count in the first category and up to five years for each count in the second.
(More US Supreme Court stories.)

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